The significant update 2.0.0 for Pokémon Pokopia has arrived, headlined by the introduction of underwater exploration, primarily featuring Ditto's new ability to dive.
With the Pokopia expansion pass, players can now access the Bubbly Basin region, which includes a new storyline and introduces a variety of new Pokémon. Beyond these major additions, the update delivers numerous quality-of-life improvements aimed at enhancing the player experience. These range from a universal storage solution to streamlined item management and enhanced interactive elements with Pokémon.
Key Gameplay Improvements
Among the most anticipated features is the portal pod, a universal chest that persists across all regions, alleviating storage concerns. Players can now appraise up to 10 lost relics simultaneously, either by speaking with Professor Tangrowth or using the computer in Palette Town. For those tracking specific Pokémon, the Pokédex now allows direct travel to a Pokémon's home region if it's located elsewhere, eliminating the need to manually exit the Pokédex and travel.
Habitat management has also been refined. Rebuilding a destroyed Pokémon habitat within the same area will automatically prompt the Pokémon to return. Furthermore, if furniture is removed and a Pokémon becomes sad, they will now react more quickly if that specific furniture is replaced. Interactions with Pokémon have also seen adjustments, with dialogue indicators reduced to make special conversations and requests more prominent, particularly those directed at Ditto. Actions like gathering honey and collecting resources can now be performed multiple times in a single interaction.
The update introduces the ability to build underwater, expanding construction possibilities. New items, including the portal pod and a safe, have been added, and recipes can be purchased after increasing Palette Town’s environment level. A new pattern, the dynamic Ditto print, can be obtained by speaking to Smearguru after acquiring the diploma. Two new emotes, Lie Down and Ready, Set, Go!, are available on Bleak Beach and Dream Islands, respectively. Players can also customize their characters with five new hair colors: orange, light pink, yellow-green, blue-green, and brown.
Inventory and Building Enhancements
Item management receives substantial upgrades, with functions for moving items in bulk between the storage box and bag, and deleting items placed within objects like the garbage bin. Precision in building is improved with the ability to fine-tune the depth placement of items such as windows and doors. Players can now paint a variety of items, including stylish stools, handrails, metal chains, workbenches, vending machines, bikes, bookcases, Pokémon Center counters, arrow signs, and ropes. The placement limit for power generators has been doubled from 64 to 128, and the number of different photos that can be displayed in a town has increased from 10 to 40.
When crafting, materials stored in a chest adjacent to a workbench will be consumed before those in the player's bag. The visibility of target items when painting with paint balloons has been improved. The Dowsing Machine on Dream Islands now yields more treasure, and Pokémon companions can follow players during movements using Surf, Glide, Rollout, or Magnet Rise. Inhaling items and opening the bag are now possible while rolling, and Rollout can now destroy certain natural objects like large boulders. Surf can be activated on land by holding the focus button and pressing the Surf button, and its activation conditions with Waterfall have been smoothed. Leafage can be used on farm soil to revert it to a normal soil block, and Strength can now be used underwater.
A new 'All' tab has been added to both the Pokédex and Habitat Dex. The game now clarifies that buildings can be remodeled even when items like the Ditto Flag are attached to roofs or walls. During construction, Pokémon not assigned to the Build role can assist with cooking. Treasure in Sparkling Skylands will no longer appear in locations where breaking terrain would cause them to fall. Messaging for insufficient materials when copying items using the 3D Printer has been improved. Items can now be placed on top of square plants, and hide-and-sneak actions can be canceled midway.
Performance and Bug Fixes
Update 2.0.0 also includes several settings adjustments for player comfort and performance. Motion-sickness reduction settings for the camera are now available, as is an option to hide the confirmation message when canceling Magnet Rise. Players can also opt to allow movement while the move wheel is open. Certain roof items now block water, and crafting curved eaves yields more output. Tidal Bell and Clear Bell can be triggered using laser sensors and switches. Sound effects for the camping chair and sleeping bag have been adjusted, and performance for certain rendering processes has been improved.
The update addresses a number of bugs, including issues with Pokémon construction assignments, the inability of certain Pokémon like Suicune and Gholdengo to cross water, and Pokémon occasionally falling out of their habitats. Problems with Pokémon returning to habitats even when using honey, and Pokémon scolding players when using Magnet Rise have been resolved. Specific issues with berry processing, music mat timing, furniture painting, and paint usage have been fixed. Visual glitches with items viewed from a distance or through glass have been addressed. Multiplayer building completion and cancellation issues, as well as problems with item recovery and painted surfaces resetting under certain conditions, have been corrected. Ditto's position displacement when using Rock Smash while falling has been fixed. Quest progression issues in Withered Wasteland and Sparkling Skylands, and incorrect Pokédex guidance during a Sparkling Skylands request, have been resolved. Loading failures when returning from Dream Islands, and incorrect player transport upon returning or ending an online session, have also been fixed. Finally, an issue with incorrect player gender pronoun display on the Cloud Island loading screen has been corrected. A general statement indicates that several additional adjustments and bug fixes have been made to improve the overall gameplay experience.